Baseball glove



Dec. 6, 1955 T. B. BLEPP 2,725,561

BASEBALL GLOVE Filed May 27, 1953 INVENTOR.

F76 d 771500095 6. BLEPP ArroeMs'y United States Patent BASEBALL GLOVE Theodore B. Blepp, Fairview Park, Ohio Application May 27, 1953, Serial No. 357,673

4 Claims. (Cl. 2-19) This invention relates to baseball gloves, and its primary object is to provide a glove of this class which, although padded throughout the essential areas to afford ample hand protection, is especially flexible along a line extending, in the present preferred embodiment of the invention, generally from the region of the space between the thumb and index finger diagonally across the palm to the opposite side of the glove reasonably near the heel so that the glove will respond freely to the closing of the hand in the act of catching a ball, insuring the player a more secure grip on the ball, and at the same time greatly reducing hand fatigue.

With respect to this last mentioned advantage it may be pointed out that the little finger is the weakest finger on a hand, and that the corresponding finger of a glove is the heaviest. Consequently, in the use of conventional gloves, a proportionately greater amount of work or strain is imposed upon the little finger than upon the others.

A further advantage of my invention is that a caught ball may instantly be released by the natural opening of the hand, enabling a player to quickly transfer the ball to his other hand and throw it in the completion of a play requiring such performance.

More specifically expressed, it is an object of the inven tion to construct a baseball glove in a manner to provide a flexing line between the base of the little finger receiving portion of the glove and the adjacent heel portion; and a further and related object is to provide readily yielding means tying said portions together, thereby to insure the flexibility contemplated by my invention, while preserving the full ball stopping function of the glove in this region.

These ends may be accomplished in different Ways. For example, a relatively deep notch may be provided on the little finger side of the glove at any suitable location between the base of the little finger receiving portion and the heel of the glove and extending toward and reasonably near the palm, with the padding desirably reduced in thickness beyond the closed end of the notch. To strengthen the glove in the region of the notch, without interfering with its flexibility, for holding the parts on the opposite sides of the open end of the notch against undue separation.

As an alternative construction, a web of leather or I other flexible material may be built into the glove and extend across the notch. Also, either the palm member of the covering of the glove may be left intact and the back member provided with a kerf or notch and stitched to the palm member about the same, or vice versa, the padding being appropriately treated in each of these instances to insure maximum flexibility.

The foregoing objects and advantages are attained in the embodiments of the invention illustrated in the accompanying drawing, wherein similar reference characters designate like parts throughout the several views.

In the drawing,

Fig. 1 is an elevational view of the palm side of the a thong may be employed 2,725,561 Patented Dec. 6, 1955 glove, showing the glove in expanded condition, as in readiness to receive a ball;

Fig. 2 is a similar view showing the glove closed over a ball in the act of catching or holding it;

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary elevational view of the glove looking toward the back thereof;

Figs. 4 and 5 are sectional details on the respective lines 44 and 5-5 of Fig. 3, and

Figs. 6, 7 and 8 are sectional details, similar to Fig. 5, showing modifications.

Except as modified to incorporate my invention, the glove may be of any approved conventional construction. In the construction shown, the covering of the glove is made up of front and rear parts; or, more specifically, a palm member and a back member. The palm member, desingated 1, has the inner portions of fingers 2 to 5 formed integral therewith. The thumb 6 incorporates a piece of material that is stitched, at 7, to the palm member pursuant to common practice. The back member, designated 10, overlies and is stitched about its edge to the palm member, space being provided between said members for the padding 11. Similarly associated with and attached to the back member, is a hand covering member 12. These several members are desirably made of a relatively soft grade of durable leather.

Connected in the customary manner to the index finger 2 and thumb 6 is a web and a lace 16 is shown as loosely connecting together the outer ends of the fingers so as to hold them against undue separation. While I have shown a glove having four individual finger receiving portions, obviously it may be of the type wherein finger receiving portions accommodate more than one finger.

Between the base of the little finger receiving portion 5 and the adjacent portion of the heel 18 of the glove is a relatively deep notch 20 that desirably follows the direction of a line X-X, shown as extending diagonally across the palm of the glove from the space between the thumb and index finger to the little finger side of the glove near the heel 18. A seam 21 that connects the palm and back members together along the little finger side of the glove, and which, in the present instance, incorporates a welt, continues about the sides and closed end of the notch 20. Through holes in the portions of the glove on opposite sides of, and immediately adjacent,

the open end of the notch is laced a thong 24. As illustrated in Fig. 3, the padding 11 is cut away about the notch and beyond the inner end thereof.

In Fig. 6 I have shown a modified construction wherein a web 25 of leather or other flexible material extends across the notch 20 (which corresponds to the notch 20 of the previously described construction), and its edges are shown as connected to the edges of the palm member 1 and the back member 10 by stitching 26.

In the modification illustrated in Fig. 7 the palm member 1 is connected by stitching 27 to the back member 10 along opposite sides of a notch or kerf 20 Fig. 8 shows a construction which is the reverse of that shown in Fig. 7. Here the back member 10 is connected, by stitching 28, to the palm member 1 on opposite sides of the notch or kerf 20, a welt 29 being shown as incorporated in the seam.

A ballplayer, when using the glove, holds it fully spread out with his hand wide open when preparing to receive a ball. The glove is shown in this condition in Fig. 1. At

" the instant of impact of the ball with the glove, the player instinctively closes his hand and entraps the ball, as illustrated in Fig. 2. This action of catching the ball is almost automatic in that the force of the impact upon the palm of the glove creates a tendency for the glove to collapse about the ball, and this makes easier the closing of the glove by the player.

3 Furthermore, the flexibility of the glove along the line X-X facilitates release of the ball for the completion of a crucial play in which the ball has to be instantly rethrown.

The terms baseball glove and glove are used herein v in the broad sense and include that type of baseball glove commonly referred to as mitt-as, for example, catchers mitt.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A baseball glove comprising a covering made up of front and rear parts and including a little finger receiving portion and a heel, and padding contained within said covering, the padding being slit entirely therethrough along a flexing line extending from the little finger side of the glove toward the palm thereof between the base of the little finger receiving portion and the heel and located closely adjacent the latter, the aforesaid parts of the covering being cut to provide a kerf along said line inwardly from the little finger side of the glove and secured together on opposite sides of said kerf.

2. In a baseball glove, the combination and arrangement of parts set forth in claim 1, and flexible means tying together the portions of the glove on opposite sides of the kerf adjacent the open end thereof.

3. A baseball glove including normally spaced apart thumb and first finger receiving portions and a heel and a little finger receiving portion, the glove comprising a palm member and a back member connected together along their margins, and padding interposed between said members; the padding and at least one of the aforesaid members being out entirely through to provide a kerf therein along a flexing line extending from the little finger side of the glove toward the palm thereof between the base of the little finger receiving portion and the heel and considerably nearer the latter than the former, the projected axis of said kerf extending diagonally across the palm and between the thumb and first finger receiving portions of the glove, and means connecting the members together along the opposite sides of the kerf.

4. In a baseball glove, the combination and arrangement of parts defined by claim 2, wherein the portions of the glove on opposite sides of the kerf and adjacent the open end thereof are provided with holes, and a thong engaged through said holes for holding said portions against undue separation.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 967,120 Gamble Aug. 9,1910 1,465,830 Raymond Aug. 21, 1923 2,109,974 OHara Mar. 1,1938 

